Looking to maybe get a blu-ray player for my girlfriend. She currently has nothing hooked up to her TV besides the cable box (no DVD, consoles, etc.), so I'm looking for something that does a little bit of everything. Feature check list:- Blu-Ray play back (obviously)- DVD play back (there any players that don't support regular DVDs?)- Wi-Fi networking prefered, wired could work- MPEG-4, H-264 & DivX/XviD support- playback from shares on local computers- playback from media files on DVD / USB drives- Internet streaming from netflix (Canadian, so netflix.ca support)

Any one have any good recommendations?

[edit]Forgot to mention: Easy to use front end. Needs to be simple to navigate the interface and browse for files to play.[/edit]

The Playstation 3 meets all of your criteria, but $300 might require more money than what you're willing to spend. It's kind of an obligatory thing in these parts of the forums, but I highly recommend that you do some research on AVS Forum.

Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work, you can always hit them with it.

The PS3 is a little pricey, but the usability factor is what pushes it down for me. Too many software updates, and it's file browser for network shares leaves a lot to be desired. Not ruling it out entirely, but curious if people have a better alternative.

The software updates are one of the best things, in my opinion, since it all but guarantees future-proofing in regards to Blu-Ray support. I can't think of any other players off the top of my head that are as supported as strongly as the PS3. And it's not like patches are coming out every day, week, or month either.

I do agree with you, however, on your opinion of the file system nature when browsing media servers. It's not the prettiest UI, but it does get the job done.

Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work, you can always hit them with it.

The alternative that can make sure you have good future support is to build a playback only HTPC with a Blu-ray drive. If everything is new it will be more than $300, so PS3 is not really that expensive if you think about it. My only qualms about PS3's file browser over DLNA is format support, other than that I almost always go to the Folders view and it is decent. PS3's automatic scaling and noise reduction do a fairly good job compared to some of the default settings from computer playback.

The Model M is not for the faint of heart. You either like them or hate them.

My LG BluRay player has had at least as many updates as my PS3, and LG has not really explained what's changed. Sometimes stuff gets added to the menu, and other times, I can't tell what's happened. They all need updating.

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do.

I think my LG player does everything on your list. I use it way more for Netflix playback than I do for Bluray playback and it has been flawless for that. It also has local and network playback of video files, but I haven't played around with that too much as I use my xbox 360 with media extender for that purpose. I'm sure the PS3 can do all those things and an HTPC certainly could, but I don't think either would be as straightforward or simple (or inexpensive) as a Bluray that could do them all. You did say it was for your girlfriend, so unless you want to be supporting a system instead of just using it for the listed reasons, stick with a player. I think this one is the natural successor to my model that is a few years old now: http://www.amazon.com/LG-BD670-Wireless ... B004OF9XGO

Hi AllNew to the blu ray stuff myself so please bare with me. Looking for a player in the £200-£300 price range ($300-$400). ANy ideas.Just wanna watch movies as crystal clear as possible. And I have a 1080i Toshiba tv. Will I need a 1080p tv?Cheers

New to the blu ray stuff myself so please bare with me. Looking for a player in the £200-£300 price range ($300-$400). ANy ideas.Just wanna watch movies as crystal clear as possible. And I have a 1080i Toshiba tv. Will I need a 1080p tv?

The PS3 actually makes quite a very decent Blu-Ray player, if you have that sort of cash to spend — they can be had for around £200 including a game.

You won't need a 1080p TV but the best results are to be had with one.

Potty wrote:Hi AllNew to the blu ray stuff myself so please bare with me. Looking for a player in the £200-£300 price range ($300-$400). ANy ideas.Just wanna watch movies as crystal clear as possible. And I have a 1080i Toshiba tv. Will I need a 1080p tv?Cheers

Panasonic players are supposed to be pretty good. However, I am a bit concerned about your 1080i TV. How old is it? Does it have HDMI input? The latest Bluray players are getting rid of component out and/or finally implementing what the movie studios call for to not output the best quality (ICT reducing to half vertical resolution) if you are not outputting via HDMI/DVI.

The Model M is not for the faint of heart. You either like them or hate them.

If playing back Blu-ray discs is the primary purpose of your purchase then I would highly recommend taking a new-ish Blu-ray disc with you to a large electronics retailer to check disc load times. Some players take FOREVER to load Blu-ray discs. Other players spend an inordinate amount of time coming out of standby. It may not seem like a big deal, but if you are going to be watching lots of BD movies it will get on your nerves if your player is slow in the startup/loading department.

I have very limited experience with player-only Blu-ray devices, but I can tell you that Panasonic BD recorders (2010 models) are slower to start up than the average PC, so I would be wary of their players. Panasonic's UI is also quite clunky. Sony's UI - the XMB - is very polished and fairly snappy.

Japanese Blu-ray players tend to have fewer extra features and their DLNA/USB media playback features have very limited video/audio format support. Samsung and LG are definitely ahead in this department.